Danny Paterson grabbed the winner, as Vale Juniors celebrated a third straight victory against nine man Finnart.
A hectic first-half saw Vale twice lead, only to be pegged back by the visitors.
However Paterson put Brian Brown’s men ahead early in the second-half and they held on, with Finnart duo Declan McGarrity and Brandon McAuley both seeing red within five minutes of each other.
Boss Brown said: “Finnart are a good side so I was really happy to get the three points.
“All the teams around us need to go and play each other now, so I think we’ve dragged in a few teams. We know we can catch Girvan if we win our games in hand.
“It’s good to have it back in our own hands knowing we aren’t sitting waiting on other teams doing us a favour.
“Greg Thackrey and Ryan Hynes have struck up a really good partnership. We could’ve done with it earlier in the season, but the two of them seem to be hitting it off which is really good.
“Greg looks like he’s been playing at this level for years and playing with a guy like Ryan can only help him.”
Vale took the lead after 14 minutes when Ryan Hynes cracked home a superb effort from a tight angle.
The joy was short lived however, as Finnart levelled 13 minutes later through Jamie Adam.
A topsy-turvy first-half saw Vale respond almost immediately.
Great work from Hynes set up under-20s graduate Greg Thackrey, who celebrated his fifth goal in just seven top team starts.
Again Finnart levelled however, with Jonathan Steel on target after 38 minutes.
Thing settled down somewhat in the second-half with Paterson, playing an unfamiliar left-wing position, grabbing the only goal from close range.
Hopes of a Finnart comeback were dashed when referee Matthew McAlpine showed two reds in five second-half minutes, as Vale held on to secure a priceless result.
And Brown has now challenged his players to continue their form against promotion chasing Irvine Victoria on Saturday, who have former Vale stalwart Chris Jackson in their ranks.
He added: “It will be another really difficult game, there are a couple of familiar faces in their team so we’re looking forward to seeing them.
“They’ll be looking to put a bad result at the weekend right, but with three wins under our belt we’ll be travelling full of confidence.”
